Sorry that it has taken me so long to get a new chapter up.  I have been really busy at school, and with work, and I wanted a well written chapter.  I have a good week long break coming up, so I'm hoping to get some more of this story done.  And now, the moment that you have just spent the last several seconds to start has begun.  The new chapter.

But first I'd like to thank my wonderful betas! 

Now, seriously, I'm going to start the story.

*          *          *          *          *

            Happily, Juliana pranced around the apartment in some of her mother's old clothing for Rosa.  Sydney still had to go to work.  Despite Juliana was sick Rosa was able to stay home.  After resting the day before, and that morning, Juliana was feeling better, and was up and playing.  Giggling, she jumped onto the couch.  "*Juli, don't jump on the couch.*" Rosa said, scooping up the little girl and helping her back onto the firm floor.  Juliana smiled, and then went running around again.  

            "*When is my Mommy supposed to be home?*"

            "*Soon.  You know that.*"

            "*When is Tío Luis come home?*"

            "*After your mother.*"

            "*When is Raquel coming home?*"
            "*With your mother.*"

            "*Will you play dolls with me?*" Juliana ran and got two dolls from her room before Rosa could even answer the little girl's request.   Juliana handed a doll to Rosa, who took it.

            "*Juliana, you actually need to take a nap first.*"

            "*Why?*"

            "*Because, you were sick this morning, and when you're sick, you have to take more naps.*"

            "*Not tired.*" With that, Juliana took off running.    After much convincing, Rosa was able to get Juliana to at least play quietly in her room. 

            Sydney came home, and was surprised to come back to a quiet house.  She put her bag down and found Rosa bent over work at the table.  Rosa had run upstairs to play with her toys that she had spent the bus drive home talking about.  "*How did you get her to go to sleep?*" Sydney inquired.

            "*She's just quietly playing.*"

            "*I'm going to go talk to her.*" Sydney quietly ascended the stairs, to the upper part of the apartment.  Quietly playing with Raquel, the two had their dolls, lying in the doll house, as the two prepared play food for their dolls to eat.  Upon seeing her mother standing at the door, Juliana smiled brightly, and jumped up and hugged her mother.

            "Hola Mama!"  She said.  "*Come play!*"

            "*Juli, I need to talk to you for a minute before I can play.  Come on.*" Sydney scooped up her little girl and carried her to the bed room.  "*Juliana, do you remember the man that came to my office yesterday?*"

            "*Yes.*"

            "*You know how Mommy doesn't remember anything before you were born.*"

            "*You still don't.*"

            "*You're right.  I still don't remember things very well.  Juli, that man was from my past.  He was from before you were born.*"

            "*Ok.*"

            "*Juliana, I want you to be serous now.*" Juliana's attention had wavered, and she no longer sat on her mother's lap.  She saw the jewelry on her mother's dresser, and began to play with it.  Upon her mother's snap, Juliana put down the necklace and walked back to her mother's lap.  "*Juliana, how would you like to go to America?*"

            "*For a vacation?*"

            "*Maybe, but maybe to live there one day.  I don't know when.*"

            "*Will Tía, and Tío, and Raquel come too?*"

            "*I don't think so sweetie.*"

            "*Nope, don't want to go.*"

            "*I didn't say we would.  I said that there might be a chance that we would go there.*"

            "*Why?*"

            "*Why?*" Sydney knew that this was the part where the truth had to come out, and there was no more beating around the bush.  "*Juliana, that was your Daddy, and I didn't know that until last night.*" Sydney looked into her daughter's eyes for a hint of what she was feeling.  But she only got a blank stare.  Juliana had stopped tracing the patterns on her mother's quilt, and looked at her mother.  She was silent.  "*Juli, I know that this is a shock for you, but I didn't know this until yesterday either.*" Juliana still didn't move.  "*You also have a sister I didn't know about until recently.  She's eight, and her name is Alexandra.*"   At this point, Juliana still hadn't moved since she found out.  "*They might come here in a couple of weeks, to meet you.*" Sydney could tell that her daughter had heard every word that she had just said.

            "Mama?"

            "*Yes?*" Sydney asked, hoping she would get some sort of reaction from Juliana.

            "*Can I go play now?*" Sydney almost burst out crying right there.  Her daughter had just soaked in everything she was just told, without saying anything. Positive, or negative, Sydney wanted to hear what her daughter thought.

            "*Yes.*" Juliana walked out of Sydney's room, and back into the one that she and Raquel shared.  Sydney allowed two tears roll gently down her cheek before she reached over and picked up the phone.  The card that Vaughn had given her, to call, sat on the dresser.  She glanced at her clock, and noticed that it was four.  She quickly figured the time difference, and called Vaughn at work. Her fingers shook as she dialed each number.   In five years, she had gone out with a number of guys.  Not a lot, but she wasn't staying at home for a year at a time without a date.  And never had she ever been so nervous about calling a guy.  Figuring he had a class right then, she hoped to leave a message on his machine.  Which was fine.  She was so nervous that she was afraid that she would say something stupid to him.

            "Michael Vaughn."  Sydney almost dropped the phone at the sound of his voice.

            "Michael, it's me."  Her voice wavered like the ocean.

            "Sydney, hello."  Vaughn detected that Sydney was immediately reached out to her.  "What's wrong Syd?"  He asked.

            "I told Juliana about you."

            "I take it she didn't take the news well at all?"

            "No."

            "She took it well?"

            "No."

            "What do you mean?"

            "She just took it.  All she did for like several minutes was give me this blank stare.  It hurt.  I have no idea how she felt."

            "I told Alexandra."

            "How did she take it?"

            "Very well.  She wanted to fly out and meet you guys right then."

            Sydney gave a small laugh.  "I'm glad she was excited."  There was a long and awkward pause before Sydney spoke again.  "Michael, I think it would be good if you and Alex come out."

            "You're already calling her Alex."

            "I am?"

            "Yeah.  It was something that only you did.  Everyone else calls her Alexandra.  She never liked anyone else calling her Alex except for her mother,  she still doesn't."

            "I didn't even know I called her Alex."

            "Deep in your heart, it is obvious that you still remember the little things that your head forgot."

            "I guess I do." 

            "So when should I order the tickets for?"

            "What is best for you and Alexandra?"

            "We have a spring break in less than a month."  Sydney could hear the rustle of papers as Vaughn checked the dates.  "Actually in two weeks."

            "Mr. Vaughn?"  Sydney heard a quaint voice call from the other line.  She heard Vaughn talk briefly to the student, asking him to wait. 

            "Syd?  What do you think?"

            "Two weeks is fast."

            "We can always wait until the summer.  I mean, I can't take anymore time off."

            "I understand."  Sydney quickly thought.  "Two weeks it is."

            "Great!"

            "And just to clarify, it will be just you and Alexandra.  Not anyone else I know?"

            "Yeah.  But your father may stop by before then."

            "My father. Why?"

            "He had access to the same resources I did.  And he was looking just as much as I was.  Jack was in Tibet at the time."

            "Oh."

            "Syd, I have to go and help a student with something.  I'll call you later."

            "Ok."

            "Bye."

            "Bye."  Sydney heard the defining tone of the phone as she put it in its cradle.

            Vaughn paused before he turned back around to his student.  He desperately wanted to tell Sydney that he loved her, like he always ended conversations with her.  But he knew that she would be weirded out by that.  To her, they had only just met.   Giving a smile, he turned around.  "What can I help you with Mr. Mathews?"

            "Sir, I was wondering, is there anyway you can raise my grade?"

            "Kevin, you haven't turned in three assignments.  The only way I could raise your grade was if you took this test."  Vaughn pulled out a test from one of his AP classes, and handed it to him.  "It is over material we've covered, but it is at the AP level.  If you get a 50% I'll give you 10 extra credit points.  For every ten percent, you get another five points."  Vaughn said.

            Kevin looked briefly over the test.  He looked worried.  "What would ten points do to my grade?"

            "About 3 percentage points."

            "What is my grade?"

            Vaughn quickly opened up his grade book, and selected Kevin Mathews' grade.  "You have a 68.4 percent."

            "I need a C to remain in track."  Kevin desperately said.  "I don't think I can get a 50% on this test here.  Is there anything else?"

            "I'm afraid not."

            Kevin stormed out of Vaughn's office in a fit of furry.  Vaughn just smiled, remembering his own high school experiences.  He picked up the thrown test, and put it back onto his desk.

            "The track kids are the worst."  Fellow teacher Chris Chadwick said.  He was only a few years out of college, and the resemblance, maturity wise, between him, and his students was uncanny. "I had three in my class once, and I caught all three of them cheating on a test.  I was egged the next week.  And my mother was in town. She just flipped out."

            "Kevin just isn't able to put dates with events.  I have tried to help him get that C for track, but history doesn't click."

            "I'm just saying, if you get egged, it's your own fault."  Chris sat down in the desk next to Vaughn.  "Now, where are you going over spring break?"

            "What do you mean?"

            "Come on, I'm three desks over, I think I heard you talk about buying tickets for spring break.  Where are you and Alexandra going?"

            "Barcelona."

            "Spain?"

            "Aren't you a social studies teacher as well?  Of course Barcelona, Spain."

            "You are only going to see one city in Europe for a week.  If I was going to Spain, I would see all of Europe, and spend like a month there."

            "It was the longest amount of time we could go, in the shortest time."

            "Something important must be in Barcelona."

            "Yep."  Vaughn heard the bell ring, signaling the end of third period, and his planning time.  He stood up, straightening the papers he had just finished grading, and walked to the exit of the door.  Chris quickly grabbed his materials for his next class, and followed Vaughn.

            "Are you going to tell me?"

            "Nope."

            "Why not?"

            "I'm entitled to my secrets."  Vaughn paused in the middle of the hallway.  Like water around a rock, busy students parted for him and Chris. "God, Sydney would kill me for saying that.  She hated secrets, considering it hurt her once."

            "What are you jabbering about?"

            "Nothing."  Vaughn went into his class room.  As students began to file in, Chris backed off.  Vaughn absent mindedly taught for the rest of the day.  His thoughts were elsewhere.  He thought about Sydney mostly.  But of course coupled with Sydney was Juliana, and Alexandra, and the upcoming trip to Barcelona.  He thought of his mother arriving, and what she would think when she found out that Sydney was alive.  She had always loved Sydney like her own daughter, and was upset when she first went missing.  Recently, she had taken to nagging Vaughn about trying to find someone new, so that Alexandra would have a mother to talk to when it came time for that time.  Vaughn still hadn't figured out how to tell his mother.  Alexandra was a breeze.  It was his mother he was really worried about.  Vaughn also thought about how mad Kevin was about his grade, and getting kicked off the track team.  He wondered if his own house would get egged.  Relief came when the final bell rang.  But it didn't last long.  Vaughn had forgotten that he had to stay around for a while, to help some students make up some work.  He went into the pod, where his and other teacher's offices were, and found the table full of teachers grading homework, around the common table, complaining about their days.

            "Mike, join us?"  Chris called out, as Vaughn went slinking into his office.

            "I can't actually.  I was just going to get a couple of things, and then I have to go.  My mother came today."  His colleagues sent him well wishes, as he waved good bye.

            Vaughn walked out to his car, and almost dropped his bag in shock.  Sitting on the hood of his car was none other than Eric Weiss.  "What's up man?"

            "You left some paperwork undone yesterday.  Kendall wasn't happy.  He threatened to fire you, and then forgot you didn't work there anymore."

            "I haven't worked there for years.  He forgot I didn't work there?"

            "Kendall is getting old.  Memory is definitely going.  But you still need to fill these out."

            "Explain to me Eric, what will happen if I don't?"

            "He won't trust you with missions again."

            "Fine with me."

            "This weekend's was considered a mission."  Vaughn stood there silent. 

            "Tell him that I will get these to him, if he gets me and Alexandra well priced tickets for Barcelona in two weeks."

            "What is well priced?"

            "Anything below what we would pay through a travel agency.  He owes it to Sydney, with their half-ass efforts to find her."

            "Is that what you think the efforts were?"

            "I worked there the year after she disappeared.  She was a priority for a few weeks, and then it fell through the cracks."

            Eric had lost it.  His best friend wasn't acting himself.  "Listen up man." he said, getting up into Vaughn's face.  "There were a bunch of us who for five years would pull all nighters for weeks on end.  Going on missions out of our own pocket to look for her.  There were eight of us who after you left, kept up your work.  Sure Kendall didn't sanctify everything we did, but we never gave up. We want to see Sydney come home too."

            "Thanks for doing that.  But one think I always trusted the agency with was getting their agents home.  Twice now, that hasn't happened.  First with my father, then with my wife."

            "But we found her.  You're going to see her in two weeks."

            "Then explain to me, why my daughter doesn't know who I am?  Explain to her whose fault it is that I wasn't by her side when she was sick this week.  Explain whose fault it is that I wasn't by Sydney's side when she needed me."

            "You know whose fault it is."

            "The KGB, yeah, but they don't know this.  I want you to explain this to them."

            "I can't."  Eric admitted.

            "Give me the papers.  I'll get them to his desk by tomorrow before work."

            "I'll see what I can do about those tickets." Eric said.

            "Thanks.  I'm sorry for that."

            "Its ok.  You've got a lot on your mind."

            "And now I have to go tell my mother that her daughter in law is not really dead, and she has another granddaughter."

            "Bridgette is in town?"

            "Should be at the house now.  Her plane arrived early this afternoon."

"Well, tell her hello for me."

            "I will."  Vaughn got into his car, and drove home, cursing leaving so late. He sat on the beltway, not moving.  The radio killed the eerie silence that accompanied him.  The bad news had been reported only minutes earlier.  An accident had blocked the entire road for several hours.  If he had left five minutes later, he would have been ushered off the interstate.  Now he was stuck, with miles of other stranded travelers in front of him, and a block behind him.  Knowing he was stuck for a while, he picked up his cell phone.

            "Bonjour."  He heard his mother answer.

            "Mom." He said.  "I'm glad to see you made it ok."

            "Oh yes.  Quite fine.  Your daughter is now showing me the finer parts of your charming house."

            "It hasn't changed since you came last year."

            "I'm letting her humor me."

            "Ok.  I'm just calling to say that I will be home late."

            "Oh dear.  Are you stuck in that awful traffic jam?"

            "How did you know about that?"

            "Dear, its all over the news."

            "Right."

            "Well, the entire better.  This way when you get home, dinner will be waiting for you."

            "Maman, you really don't have to do that."

            "But I want to."

            "Seriously, just let me come home, and let me cook.  You're our guest."

            "Since when have you cooked?"

            "Since Sydney-"Vaughn cut off there, knowing that his mother still didn't know that she was alive. 

            "I understand.  I must finish this tour your daughter is giving me."

            "Maman, I want to tell you something first."  Vaughn didn't have time to think about what he had just said.  For a split second when he first called, he considered calling to tell his mother about Sydney.  His upbrining taught him that there were things you don't say over the telephone.  But the words slipped out before he had a chance to stop them. 

            "Of course Michael."

            Over the phone wasn't how he had planned to tell his mother, but she was the last person he had to tell.  Keeping this wondrous news bottled in him was killing him.  He needed to tell her, weather it was the right time or not.   Vaughn took a deep breath before continuing.  "Sydney never died."

            "I know, she only disappeared.  But really, its been six years.  I, like your daughter, believe that she didn't live.  Now I know that isn't what you believe, and I respect that."

            "No, we found her."

            "Excuse me?"

            "In Barcelona this weekend.  Weiss and I went over there.  I saw her, I've talked with her."

            "Oh." His mother breathed.  "Have you told Alexandra yet?"

            "Yes."

            "Michael, we will talk more when you get home.  Your daughter is about ready to pull my arm off."

            Vaughn chuckled as he pictured the sight from his car.  "Alright Mom.  I'll see you when I get home."

            "Yes.  Au revoir."

            "Au revoir."  Vaughn ended the call, and sat back in his seat.  It was going to be a long drive home.